A Grand Isle man accused of driving over a deputy sheriff following a traffic stop in South Hero Wednesday night has pleaded not guilty to several charges, including attempted first-degree murder, according to court documents.
Kevin Marx, 36, had been held in custody without bail since his arrest after police said they tracked him down at his home late Wednesday night, about three hours after the incident.
He was arraigned in Grand Isle County Superior criminal court in North Hero on Thursday morning. He entered not guilty pleas to charges of attempted murder, as well as gross negligent operation of a motor vehicle and aggravated assault with a weapon.
Judge Navah Spero agreed to a request from Grand Isle County State’s Attorney Douglas DiSabito to hold Marx in custody without bail pending another hearing.
Matthew Schultz, Marx’s attorney, did not object to the prosecutor’s no-bail request. Marx took part in the hearing by video from the Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans.
The injured deputy, Sgt. Nicholas Pillsbury of Essex, had been taken for treatment to the University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington and was released Thursday morning, according to Vermont State Police.
The incident leading to the charges against Marx began around 8 p.m. Wednesday when Pillsbury was struck and injured by a Subaru Forester allegedly driven by Marx on Route 2 in South Hero after he was pulled over for a stop sign violation, according to an affidavit by state police Detective Sgt. Michael Mattuchio.
Mattuchio wrote that when he interviewed Pillsbury, the deputy reported that he and Marx got into an argument about the traffic stop, and Pillsbury showed him a video of the alleged violation.
Marx then called him an obscenity and asked if he was going to write him a ticket and that it was going to ruin his life, the affidavit stated.
Pillsbury told Marx he was going to mail him a ticket, and Marx continued using obscenities toward him, Mattuchio wrote.
Pillsbury walked back to his cruiser and saw Marx’s vehicle do a U-turn and reported seeing the vehicle’s lights, the affidavit stated.
He reported that he tried to run away but was struck again by the front of the Subaru, which he said was trying to “run him over,” according to the affidavit.
“Pillsbury tried to jump onto the hood of the Subaru and attempted to draw his firearm, but was unable,” the affidavit stated. “Pillsbury then remembers waking up underneath the Subaru. He said that his right arm was pinned underneath his chest, and his body was pinned under the front axle.”
At some point, the affidavit stated, Pillsbury believed Marx tried to put the vehicle in reverse.
“Pillsbury was unsure who it was, but remembered someone trying to dig him out, telling him they were sorry and were trying to get him out,” the affidavit stated, which did not identify that person.
Pillsbury then reported losing consciousness, Mattuchio wrote.
Pillsbury also told the detective that he wasn’t sure when walking back to his cruiser if he had turned off his body camera before he was struck by the vehicle, and whether it may have captured the incident, the affidavit stated.
Police and first responders from several agencies responded to the scene. After a search, Marx was taken into custody around 11 p.m. Wednesday at his home, the release stated.
